Kerala Couple Calls Out Moral Policing By Cops Through Facebook Live

People need to mind their own business.

A couple in Kerala's capital Thiruvananthapuram, when accosted by two cops for their arms around each other in the park in the Napier museum, did something the cops had not expected, they took to Facebook Live and called them out on their moral policing.

The couple, Vishnu and Arathy, were in a park when they were approached by two constables who accused them of being vulgar in public. The couple were later taken to a police station and fined.

Vishnu is seen questioning the police officers on why sitting together in a public park was a nuisance.

The News Minute, that translated the entire video, reports one of the cops telling the couple that they would call their parents and then think of whether to marry them off or not, and that otherwise "such acts" were not allowed in public places.

While they kept questioning as to why they were being harassed,The Indian Express reports that one of the cops is heard saying that the couple were kissing and the couple asked them to prove it.

The Facebook Live video has since gone viral.

After the incident, the couple were taken into custody by the police and fined Rs 200. They were then let off.

The News Minute quoted Aarathy as saying, "When we said we were not married, they said that such vulgar behaviour was not permitted in the premises of the museum. To this, Vishnu demanded to know what we had done wrong. In fact, this is a grave violation of human rights. How can the police evict us from the museum alleging that we caused public nuisance, when we did not?"

However, the police do not think that this is moral policing. A senior officer told NDTV, "The police acted based on the complaint received at the police station, not suo-motto. This is more of a cultural issue which some sections of the public haven't come to terms with."